*REFLECTIONS* Indeed corruption is a prime problem that will continue to undermine development efforts unless it is addressed. 1. In a free market economy, income and capital allocation is critical for improving productivity and quality of life. Corruption creates major resource misallocation. Capital is supposed to be owned by those who have earned it through the discipline of earning income. Massive corruption, such as we have in Nigeria, transfers substantial resources at no cost to those who have not mastered how to deploy capital to create value. It is such corrupt proceeds that fuels further misallocation such as the huge residential apartments that are built in Ikoyi and Victoria Island and some other locations remaining vacant for very long periods. An efficient non-corrupt system would have led to such capital building affordable apartments for which there is huge demand. Another example of misallocation that is substantially corruption funded are the private jets. We probably have as many private jets in Nigeria as there are commercial planes. In a country where more than 50% survive on less than N6,000 per month, this is simply absurd. That is what corruption does. 2. Botswana is a good example of the importance of transparency. In 1966 at independence, Botswana had a per capita income of just $70; much poorer than Nigeria. Botswana is acclaimed as the most transparent country in Africa. Guess what, today Botswana has average income per head of well over $12,000 when Nigeria is still below $3,000. Education is free. The government gives scholarships even to those attending private universities. A former President of Botswana won the Mo Ibrahim prize for African leaders; a prize that has remained without a winner for four years in a row. 3. Ghana is another example. Ghana doesnt have the resources Nigeria has. But it is more transparent, by far. It is a saner country with much fewer people living below the poverty line. Many Nigerians have made Ghana their home. Nigerian students flood to Ghanaian universities. The country is now the choice destination of African-Americans seeking to connect with their roots; a role which should naturally be filled by Nigeria
Posted on: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 06:49:12 +0000
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